Dynamics of War: Culture, Society, Environment, and Pedagogy

War is an ever-present feature of human civilization. Nearly all cultures and societies show accounts of human conflict. This portfolio seeks to provide both a multidimensional analysis of war and a means of instructing students to appreciate its significance as a driving force of history using three different components. The syllabus project provides a long-term view of how the various wars and conflicts came to be and progressed in Western Civilization in the modern era. The chapter-length paper shows the ravaging effects that war and conflict can have on a physical landscape and the environment in which the conflict takes place. Case studies of the battles of Moscow and Kursk in the Soviet Union are used to show that while war has a great impact on nature, the environment of an area can also greatly impact the progression and outcome of battles and even entire war efforts. The digital timeline of American consumption during the Second World War provides an understanding of war through a different perspective, showing how war can affect domestic as well as foreign populations. This portfolio intends to illustrate the complexity of conflict and war in human history and the many consequences that accompany war throughout historical accounts. While the syllabus shows the long-term effects of war over a vast amount of time, the paper and the timeline project show the direct consequences of warfare on citizens, food production and management, and the effected environment. As a whole, this portfolio seeks to further our understanding of war and its impact on humanity